Alfa Romeo at 115: How racing heritage met design legacy

Dubai: Italian carmaker Alfa Romeo is marking 115 years in 2025 — a milestone that places it among the world’s oldest continuously operating automotive brands. Known as much for its racing roots as for its role in shaping Italian industrial design, Alfa Romeo continues to hold a unique position in automotive history.

Founded in 1910 in Milan, the brand's longevity is closely tied to its blend of performance engineering and design, which helped shape the aesthetic and technological trajectory of 20th-century European cars. For generations of enthusiasts — known colloquially as Alfisti — the name evokes a mix of motorsport nostalgia and everyday road allure.

Racing origins: Two historic firsts

Alfa Romeo’s motorsport legacy is tightly woven into its brand identity. Two key racing moments — both commemorated this year — underscore its place in competitive automotive history.

In April 1930, the Alfa Romeo 6C 1750 Gran Sport won the Mille Miglia endurance race, averaging over 100 km/h across one of Europe’s most demanding courses — a first at the time. Just seven years earlier, at the 1923 Targa Florio, the brand introduced its now-iconic Quadrifoglio four-leaf clover emblem. Originally painted as a good luck charm by driver Ugo Sivocci, it has since become a signature of Alfa Romeo’s high-performance models.

A year of multiple milestones

The 115th anniversary coincides with several other notable moments in the brand’s long history. A century ago, in 1925, Alfa Romeo’s Tipo P2 took home victory in the first-ever World Automobile Championship, a title that helped to cement the brand’s global racing reputation. That same legacy carried into the postwar years.

In 1950, the company introduced the Alfa Romeo 1900 at the Paris Motor Show — its first mass-produced model, aimed at bringing performance and design to a wider audience. That same year, Alfa Romeo’s Tipo 158 was crowned champion of the inaugural Formula 1 World Championship, with Italian driver Nino Farina behind the wheel.

Other anniversaries being marked in 2025 include the 70th anniversary of the debut of the Giulietta Berlina, unveiled in 1955, a car that brought Italian styling to everyday life. In 1965, the Giulia Sprint GTA was introduced at the Amsterdam Motor Show — a lightweight, racing-tuned version of the Giulia that achieved global motorsport success. A decade later, in 1975, the 33 TT 12 captured the World Championship for Makes. Then in 1985, the Alfa 75 made its debut, the last mass-produced Alfa built on the classic Alfetta platform.

Together, these anniversaries add up to more than coincidence — they reflect a brand that, for over a century, has remained deeply intertwined with both the history of motorsport and the evolution of Italian design.

Models that defined the brand

Across its 115-year journey, Alfa Romeo has released several landmark models that helped define its character and broaden its appeal. Among current and recent models, the Giulia stands out as a modern compact executive sedan with sporty dynamics, while the Stelvio marked the brand’s first venture into the SUV segment — named after a famous Italian mountain pass.

The Tonale represents Alfa Romeo’s step into electrification, positioned as a compact crossover blending heritage styling with hybrid technology. For purists and collectors, the lightweight 4C and the limited-run 8C Competizione have come to symbolize the brand’s high-performance aspirations in the modern era.

Looking ahead

While the special logo created for the 115th anniversary takes a minimalist approach, its design cues — including the prominent use of the Biscione serpent — tie the brand’s past and future together. It serves as a visual reminder of Alfa Romeo’s identity, shaped as much by engineering innovation as by style.

As the global automotive sector pivots to electrification, Alfa Romeo faces the same pressures as its peers to modernize without losing its essence. For enthusiasts and industry watchers alike, the brand’s long history offers a case study in how legacy, design, and performance continue to coexist — even after more than a century on the road.